Author: olu davies

Focus on quality was one; just-in-time delivery of raw materials and parts to the factory was another; economy of scope replaced the century-long economy of scale to make each manufacturing unit more productive than ever before.

The nation’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP, grew about 8 per cent per annum for over a decade. Japan rose to become the world’s second-largest economy, surpassed only by the United States of America.

A nation with almost no natural resources was suddenly the world’s leading manufacturer. Japanese products from cars to cameras, tools to television sets, took over markets once dominated by European and American products; Toyota eventually upended General Motors as the world’ s largest global auto manufacturer. The Japanese seemed unstoppable. Futurists were busy trying to guess when Japan would eventually overtake America as the world’s largest economy. It is quite possible that the Japanese themselves believed the pundits regarding their inevitable rise to the top.

Unexpectedly, the rapid growth slowed down; at first unnoticeably, but, it later gathered momentum. Today, Japan has slipped to the third position behind USA and China. Furthermore, it might soon fall behind India to the fourth position. The obvious question is what happened? The general answer is: loss of manufacturing power. China and India have overtaken Japan in manufacturing. Not only that, China and India are proving that a nation without a large population and natural resources can only go so far with the most productive manpower base.

HOW THE BIG THREE DEVELOPED

The Industrial Revolution did not start in the US, China or India. Europe was its birthplace and Europe consequently colonized the rest of the world and forced us to supply raw materials to the factories of Europe and to accept the products manufactured there. Modern civilization followed the rise of industries and a template for economic development and competitiveness was laid.

From an agrarian nation a country must strive to move into manufacturing as soon as possible; supply its own domestic needs first, and then venture into export. Comparative advantage dictated that each nation should focus on those goods which in the beginning were easiest for it to produce in large quantities given geographical and environmental advantages.

It was not surprising that certain parts of the world, at first, specialized in supplying certain commodities as raw materials for industrial Europe; until they gradually started moving into manufacturing themselves. For most of the seventeenth to half of the twentieth century, manufacturing was the main driver of economic growth and development.

I, MALIZE OGECHUKWU OBIEFUNA ,  a Nigerian citizen was formerly addressed as MANSARAY USMAN now wish to be called MALIZE OGECHUKWU OBIEFUNA in every document and identification.

I was formerly a holder of the Republic of Sierra Leone International passport that bears MANSARAY USMAN passport No. EO119818 but by birth I am a Nigerian citizen holder of Nigerian Passport No:800740797 that bears MALIZE OGECHUKWU OBIEFUNA 

Egypt has entered into four oil and gas exploration agreements with international companies valued at more than $340m (E£16.52bn), aiming to bolster domestic production in the face of growing energy demand.

The agreements, disclosed by the Petroleum Ministry on 30 August, encompass offshore blocks in the Mediterranean and Nile Delta.

These contracts include a commitment to drill ten new wells and were secured by the state-owned Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS).

In the early hours of November 26, 2023 there was a coup d’état alleged to have been spearheaded by some disgruntled opposition leaders, civilians and serving military officers.

The botch coup against the incumbent President Maada Bio has led to the loss of lives of about twenty people leading to the arrest of some notable influential people while many others escaped into thin air. Immediately after this past failed coup, the ruling government launched a serious manhunt for most of the opposition party elders which has resulted to the involvement of the former APC leader President Ernest Bai Koroma.

The government and its security operatives therefore beamed their searchlight to many opposition leaders of the All-People’s Congress party members, with the arrest of a former bodyguard of the former president Ernest Bai Koroma and other numerous arrests made, more names are projected as people of interest and declared wanted. Sgt. Christopher Pollet is a Police Officer who has worked diligently and honestly to the government of the Republic of Sierra Leone he rose through the rank and file of the Police hierarchy commanding respect among his peers which has made him to be a delight to all the big men in the Ex President Ernest Koroma and has been romancing with top echelons of the opposition party.

During the execution of the botch coup attempt of November 26, 2023 Police Officer Sgt. Christopher Pollet was alleged to have masterminded opening the gates of the Pademba prison where some convicted criminals of the opposition APC Party who had been jailed were let loose by the Police Officer. Unfortunately when the coup failed Shiek had to escape to Sierra Leone neighbouring country-Guinea. It was from there he hatched his escape to Europe where he resides to date. Meanwhile the Sierra Leone Police have placed an advert WANTED tag on Sgt. Christopher Pollet to answer the allegations of being part of the coup attempt and hence has been declared wanted for

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Introduction
Women and youth represent the backbone of African agriculture, making up over 60% of the continent’s agricultural labour force. Yet, they face persistent challenges, including limited access to land, finance, and markets. Youth unemployment is particularly alarming, with over 70% of Africa’s young population either unemployed or underemployed^1.

Empowering these groups is imperative. Studies indicate that addressing gender disparities in agriculture could boost farm yields by up to 30%, lifting millions out of poverty [1]. Likewise, investing in youth engagement can reduce unemployment and catalyse innovation in a sector primed for transformation. This article examines how Tanzania and Sierra Leone are addressing these challenges through national strategies, alongside perspectives from key partners like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Why Focus on Women and Youth?
Women and youth are central to Africa’s agricultural transformation, especially as the sector confronts the challenges of climate change and food insecurity. Women contribute 40–56% of the agricultural workforce in various African countries [2]. They are key to building climate resilience, as they often adopt sustainable agricultural practices and reinvest earnings into family and community welfare. Closing the gender gap in agricultural productivity could increase crop yields by 19% in some African nations, contributing significantly to GDP growth and poverty reduction. [3]

For example, in Tanzania, addressing gender disparities in agriculture has the potential to lift an estimated 80,000 people out of poverty annually [4]. Women also play a pivotal role in household nutrition and community well-being, magnifying the impact of agricultural investments.

Youth: Innovators and Catalysts for Modernization
Africa’s youth, who account for over 60% of the population, bring fresh perspectives and are vital for modernizing agriculture. [5] However, barriers such as limited access to credit, training, and land ownership often hinder their participation. Tackling these challenges can unlock their potential to adopt new technologies and drive innovation.

Programs like Tanzania’s Building a Better Tomorrow (BBT) initiative highlight the impact of empowering youth. BBT equips young agripreneurs with tools, training, and access to resources, including land and financing. For instance, its Block Farming project provides five-acre plots to trained youth, along with access to credit, storage facilities, and market linkages. This initiative has so far financed agricultural activities worth 1.2 billion TZS, trained 812 young people, and allocated 3,400 acres of land [6].

Such programs not only address youth unemployment but also foster resilience and innovation in agriculture, ensuring that young people play a key role in shaping the sector’s future.

Farmers Impact

Hawa Sesay, a beneficiary in Tikonko in Southern Region  of Sierra Leone , shared her experience: “Before this program (Feed Salone strategy), I struggled to access loans to expand my farm. The Feed Salone initiative has given me not just financial support but also training on modern farming techniques. My family and I are now thriving.”

While the program has achieved notable successes, challenges remain. Ensuring the implementation of land rights for women, addressing poor road infrastructure, and securing sustained funding are critical hurdles. Okada riders, who play a key role in transporting agricultural produce, often face accidents due to poor road conditions, further complicating access to markets.

Dr. Henry Musa Kpaka, Sierra Leone’s Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, elaborated on the government’s vision: “We aim to transform our agricultural landscape, improving aggregation, processing, and market linkages, and harnessing the power of climate-smart agriculture and AgTech. Crucial to this transformation is ensuring better access to finance and, vitally, empowering women and youth, who are the backbone of our agricultural workforce.”

Spotlight on Tanzania’s Agriculture Master Plan 2050 (AMP)
Tanzania’s Agriculture Master Plan 2050 (AMP) outlines a transformative vision to modernize agriculture by integrating youth and women as central actors. The strategy prioritizes:
• Expanding access to markets and financing for women and youth.
• Providing incentives for youth entrepreneurship in agriculture.
• Implementing capacity-building programs to equip women with practical skills for leadership in agricultural communities.

The AMP also addresses structural barriers such as women’s access to land ownership and decision-making roles. Targeted policy reforms aim to create an enabling environment for inclusive growth, aligning Tanzania’s agricultural future with sustainable development goals [7].

Spotlight on Sierra Leone’s Feed Salone Strategy
The Feed Salone initiative, launched by Sierra Leone in 2023, is transforming the agricultural sector by placing women and youth at its core. By prioritizing their leadership in agricultural processes and ensuring they have access to resources and opportunities, the initiative aims to make farming attractive and profitable for these key groups. Women, who comprise 70–80% of the agricultural workforce, now manage 30% of agricultural district offices. Youth occupy 70% of senior roles in agricultural leadership [8][TT1] .

Key initiatives under Feed Salone include:
• Machine Rings: Mechanized services operated predominantly by women and youth.
• Capacity-Building Programs: These initiatives support women-led agribusinesses, equipping them to manage small- and medium-scale enterprises and drive local economies.
• Vocational Training: Programs focus on sustainable farming and climate-smart agriculture, encouraging youth to view farming as a viable career.

Partnerships with organizations such as IFAD have enhanced access to financial services, with over 70 financial service associations and 17 community banks targeting women and youth [9]. These efforts have increased youth participation in agriculture by 50% this year, showcasing the transformative power of inclusive policies.

The Gates Foundation’s Perspective on Inclusive Agricultural Transformation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation emphasizes the critical role of women and youth in achieving sustainable agricultural transformation. Amanda Lanzarone, a gender expert at the foundation, highlights that transformation must be inclusive, ensuring that smallholder farmers, particularly women, have equitable access to and benefit from opportunities within the sector [10] . The foundation recognizes that the economic and poverty-reduction goals of agricultural transformation cannot be realized without positioning women and youth as key drivers of change while ensuring they derive tangible benefits.

To achieve this, the Gates Foundation supports country-led approaches that enhance the sustainability of agricultural programs. This includes the development and scaling of products, policies, and system-wide innovations that address the needs of farmers, small-scale producers, and women while improving nutrition outcomes. These initiatives align with the foundation’s broader commitment to fostering inclusive growth and ensuring progress reaches the most marginalized groups.

The foundation also stresses the importance of tracking and documenting progress toward gender equality in agriculture through tools like a Women’s Economic Agriculture Index and national metrics for gender-specific statistics. By focusing on data-driven insights and supporting country-specific initiatives, the Gates Foundation aims to amplify the transformative potential of agriculture for women, youth, and smallholder farmers while ensuring long-term sustainability.

By fostering inclusivity, the Gates Foundation ensures that agricultural transformation benefits marginalized groups while promoting long-term sustainability [11].Conclusion
The future of African agriculture depends on its women and youth. Initiatives such as Tanzania’s Agriculture Master Plan 2050 and Sierra Leone’s Feed Salone Strategy demonstrate the transformative power of inclusive policies. By addressing systemic barriers and creating enabling environments, these programs empower women and youth to lead the sector into a sustainable future.

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[1] UN Women, “Closing the Gender Gap in Agriculture”

[2] World Bank, “Gender Equality and Development in Africa”

[3] CARE International, “Gender and Food Security”
[4] Farm Africa, “Women in Agriculture: The Untapped Potential”
[5] UNDP, “Youth Empowerment in Agriculture”
[6] Government of Tanzania, “Building a Better Tomorrow (BBT) Program Report 2023”
[7] Tanzania Ministry of Agriculture, “Agriculture Master Plan 2050”
[8] Government of Sierra Leone, “Feed Salone Strategy 2023 Launch Report”
[9] IFAD, “Improving Financial Access for Women and Youth in Sierra Leone”
[10] Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, “Gender Equality in Agricultural Development”

[11] Gates Foundation Report, “Inclusive Agriculture in Africa”

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 [TT1]The title is clear and speaks to the core of the discourse.

A young Sierra Leonean lady, Zainab Brewah residing at Sackville Street Freetown, Western Urban Area of Sierra Leone has fled the country because of serious threats to her life from the dreaded secret Bondo society.

This evil practice of the Bondo Society in Sierra Leone has generated serious criticisms all over the world, but the practice still continue to thrive in Sierra Leone because it is backed by highly connected people in the country.

 One victim of this horror show is Zainab Brewah a mother of two, who had just fled Sierra Leone and has been missing since June, 2024.  Zainab Brewah’s problem started when she was told to take over the position of Chieftain of the Bondo Society left by her grandmother as tradition demands. Zainab would never have anything to do with the Bondo society, she refused their entreaties to join the Bondo sect. In joining the sect, one has to go through the initiation rites which involves taking of oath by dinking human blood and being forced to undertake FGM which involves the mutilation of the sexual organs with unsterilized knife which has sent many women to their early graves. Zainab Brewah totally detested the idea of having anything to do with the Bondo society as she was a pious Muslim, who regarded the activities of the Bondo sect as being idolatry.

In early June 2024, Zainab Brewah received a phone call  for a family meeting at Gbalamuya Chiefdom Kambia District Northern part of  Sierra Leone.  On getting to Gbalamuya at her family house  to her surprise Zainab was whisked away by thugs of the Bondo society in full glee of her family members and taken to the Bondo shrine where she was severely abused and tortured.  She was forced to swear to an oath in taking over the position of her Grandma in the Bondo Society, she refused taking the oath.

When the Elders of the Bondo sect learnt that Zainab had refused to take the oath of membership of the sect, they sent their thugs to their house in Freetown which was set ablaze and the rest of the family, the husband- Mr. George Brewah, daughter –Josephine and his son Ulrich Samuel Brewah had to flee to seek refuge in an undisclosed location.

At the Bondo Shrine, Zainab Brewah was continuously molested and tortured, during this period Zainab connived with one of the Security Guard at the Bondo Sect Shrine to escape from his captors. She fled to Kambia town a border town to Guinea  a neighboring country where she met a good Samaritan who helped her to settle down in Guinea. Hints gathered by this Press revealed that the good Samaritan also helped her to procure travelling documents which enable her to travel to Europe and to date her whereabouts cannot be ascertained

On 10 August 2022, protests broke out in Freetown and other areas of the country amid mounting frustrations over the soaring cost of living. Some demonstrators called for President Bio to resign. 

Sierra Leone Police has declared Addayemi Fatima wanted for his complicity in the August 10 protest which government later dubbed August 10 Insurrections against the government of Maada Bio, the incumbent democratic leader of Sierra Leone. 

According to the government they believed that the protest was an attempt to topple the government as six government Police Officers  were killed during the protest.

After the protests, 515 people were arrested and prosecuted for offenses ranging from malicious damage, arson, unlawful procession, riotous conduct, seditious behaviour to murder. The government beamed their searchlight on mostly critics of the government and members of the main opposition party leaders.  Addayemi Fatima had been an unrepentant critic of the government using every opportunity at different platforms to always  lambast the government for the bad state of the economy.

The Sierra Leone Police started carrying  out random search for the ring leaders of the protest, hence  Addayemi Fatima’s family home was earmarked for a thorough check because Addayemi Fatima had been known to be a fiery critic of the Bio led administration. 

Fatima Addayemi’s name has also been mentioned in the failed November 2024 coup d’etat in Freetown, Sierra Leone. This is because many leaders of the coup attempt were from the diaspora who came purposely to execute the coup,  such as Retired Army Officer  Amadu  Koita who was believed to be residing in London, Idrissa Hamid Kamara alias Leather Booth who was former body guard to Ex-president Ernest Bai Koroma who has been mentioned in relation to the coup plot, and several other APC party stalwarts.

When the Police eventually got to the ADDAYEMI’s family home they met a stiff resistance from the father, during the ensuring altercation with the father, Fatima was able to sneak from the backdoor to escape from the Police. 

Fatima sensing a looming danger over his security  in the country decided to escape to a neighboring country called Guinea  since then Addayemi Fatima whereabouts cannot be ascertained to date.  

Mrs. Elizabeth Isata Sowah is a young vibrant supporter of the opposition APC party who happens to work as an Administrative Assistant to the Honorable Member of Parliament representing Constituency 077 Lungi Township Northern part of Sierra Leone.  Mrs. Sowah is also the Youth Wing Public Relations officer of the opposition APC party, so by the nature of her work she has the responsibility to speak out and issue out press release about the ills of the present ruling SLPP government headed by President Maada Bio.

Most of Mrs. Sowah ‘s tirades against the ruling government has always been noticed by the ruling government sympathizers and have warned her several times of her continued criticisms of the BIO government. Mrs. Sowah indeed vowed that he would continue to speak his views about the misdeeds of the present government. She indeed crossed the red line through the revelations of highly classified documents from the Bank of Sierra Leone  containing frivolous   expenses of the president  to the public.

In early August 2024, Mrs. Sowah was returning from a Church Service when four hefty men believed to be state security agents dressed in black outfit alighted from a SUV car. The men pounced on her, bundling her into the SUVcar and she was driven to an unknown location – a camp meant for critics of the government. At the camp she was physically abused sustaining life threatening injuries all over her body and needing urgent medical attention. She was then taking to a hospital for treatment at the hospital she managed to escape at the dark cover of the night when security was relaxed.

Her escape from her captors further infuriated the captors who later went after her family members, they took her mother to the Police Station to reveal the whereabouts of her daughter. When the mother could not cooperate with them, the aged woman fell sick and died. When information got to Mrs. Sowah that her mother had fallen sick in detention and later died, she decided to escape to the next neighboring country to her country, which is Guinea and to date her whereabouts cannot be ascertained

In the early hours of November 26, 2023 there was a coup d’état alleged to have been spearheaded by some disgruntled opposition leaders, civilians and serving military officers. The botch coup against the incumbent President Maada Bio has led to the loss of lives of about twenty people leading to the arrest of some notable influential people while many others escaped into thin air. Immediately after the past failed coup, the ruling government launched a serious manhunt for most of the opposition party elders which has resulted to the involvement of the former APC leader President Ernest Bai Koroma.

The government and its security operatives therefore beamed their searchlight to many opposition leaders of the All-People’s Congress party members, with the arrest of a former bodyguard of the former president Ernest Bai Koroma and other numerous arrests made, more names are projected as people of interest and declared wanted.

Ernest Johnson is said to be an adopted son of the former President Ernest Koroma, he and others have been alleged to have participated in the botched coup plot against the legitimate incumbent ruling government. It is an open secret that Ernest Johnson was the leader of APC party’s military wing called Marshalls who are usually seen around wearing red berets. The Marshalls are usually used as enforcers of law within the APC party theses Marshalls sometimes used violence.  Ernest Johnson is feared within the ruling SLPP party and they plan to eliminate him. The failed coup brought a big opportunity for the ruling party to arrest Ernest Johnson the APC Chief Marshall. A search warrant was then placed at the home of Ernest Johnson, but he is nowhere to be found, operatives authorities believe he is on the run.

 The minister of Information and civic education assure the nation of President Maada Bio commitment in following the rule of law and due process to the investigation of the failed coup attempt, and in any form of involvement proven guilty the law will be fully enforced.